Tondo hospital acquires CT scan machine

The city government of Manila has acquired state-of-the-art CT scan machine for Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center (GABMMC) to service for free more than 600,000 residents of Tondo.

Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada personally led the blessing and inauguration of the new P36-million, 16-slice Somatom CT scan machine, the latest addition to the long list of brand new medical equipment he has recently purchased to modernize the six public hospitals of the city.

“Nowhere in Metro Manila can you see sophisticated medical equipment in a public hospital like we have here. And Manileños can use this for free,” he said.

“How much is the CT scan in private hospitals? The cheapest is around P5,000, and this is too much for most of the poor families here in Manila,” he added.

Dr. Roy Vizcarra, head of the Radiology Department of GABMCC, said the new 16-slice CT scan machine will replace the old and nearly obsolete 2-slice machine they have been using for years.

GABMCC is a 200-bed capacity district hospital located along Delpan Street. Constructed in 1998, it provides high-quality specialized health services and was recently renovated and re-equipped.

“Normally, it will cost you P10,000 to P12,000 per CT scan procedure. We give it to our patients for free,” Vizcarra said.

The 16-slice CT scan machine is more accurate and faster in producing 3D images, enabling doctors to detect a patient’s illness at an early stage and with more clarity.

The machine can detect diseases such as aneurysm, appendicitis, liver tumor, lung, liver, and pancreatic cancers; kidney stones and tuberculosis and other infections, among others, and can also be used in “staging” almost all types of cancers.

He stressed this is a big help in coming up with early diagnosis and detection of diseases because many patients, particularly the poor ones who have no financial means for regular checkups, did not know they have serious illness until it has become terminal.

The CT scan machine can also do virtual colonoscopy (VC), a medical imaging procedure used to diagnose colon and bowel disease, including polyps, diverticulosis and cancer.

Last April, the city government acquired a P117-million MRI machine for the Ospital ng Maynila on top of more brand new CT scans and digital X-ray machines.

Estrada also put up a dialysis center and an Eye Care Center at GABMMC recently.

After salvaging the city from the P5 billion debt left by the previous administration, Estrada, who always have a heart for the poor, has set aside P500 million for the rehabilitation and modernization of the city’s six public hospitals and 59 community health centers that now benefit the poor families in Manila.